UniON SYSTEMS
MUD thesis | Albert Chong | 541366
Melbourne is benchmarking itself as an international city and a knowledge city Goal 4: see 8 strategic goals of Council Plan 2013-17
Melbourne is often globally recognised as one of the most liveable cities. Recently the State Government of Victoria and Melbourne City Council has recognised that knowledge is one of the state’s fast growing exports as seen in Victoria’s top export in 2012.
Victoria’s Top Exports in 2012
Source: International Education Strategy for Victoria 2013-18
Growth in higher education students enrolled outside their country of citizenship 2010 1975
1990
0.8M
1.3M
2000 2.1M
2025
4.2M
Source: OECD and UNESCO Institute for Statistics
With the focus of this thesis studio being on the University of Melbourne and its surrounding neighbourhood, the question becomes: What is the role of a public institution within this context?
2005
3.0M
As a rapidly growing sector and two major universities: RMIT in the CBD and the University of Melbourne within close proximity, Melbourne is quick to recognise this trend and benchmark itself as a knowledge city.
7.0M
Waste generation* Victoria 2000 to 2010
Composition of waste collected Victoria 2010-11 Green Organics 18%
Garbage 52% Recyclables 30% *Waste generation includes garbage, recyclables and green organics from kerbside
Human activities generate enormous quantities of waste that is often incinerated or discarded in landfill sites, with a proportion of this recovered through recycling processes for other uses. Victorians have been steadily throwing more things away with the composition of most waste being garbage and approximately a third being recyclable products. This treatment and disposal of waste
can have significant environmental consequences. A considerable proportion of landfill waste is inert and occupies large amounts of space. The landfill tip at Ravenhall in western Melbourne was criticised in 2016 for wanting to expand the tip site to 450 hectares, making it potentially the largest landfill in the world. Many of the organic materials disposed of in landfill sites also release large quantities of greenhouse gases, such as methane and carbon dioxide, as they
decompose. Despite a gradual increase in rate of waste material recovery, the quantity of waste that is generated continues to increase. This is due to population and economic growth; an indication of an increasing rate of resource consumption.
Current practice Current attempts reduce the environmental impact of human activity are at best only slowing down the problem, rather than resulting in any net reduction in the quantity of waste generated. This calls for significant changes in current design practices, material selection, construction techniques and waste recovery processes if we are to considerably to reduce out impact on the planet. It is here that public institutions can play a major a role in being at the forefront and generator for change. Universities are areas of concentrated knowledge economies, global research and technological innovations.
SYSTEMS
source
inputs
outputs
sinks
•• Efficiency as end goal •• Degenerative linear flows
consume
source
Existing throughput systems
efficiency
waste
distribution
assimilation filtration
Regenerative systems •• •• •• •• •• ••
Efficiency as end goal Within renewal capacity Integrate with natural processes Closed loop system Multiple pathways Symbiosis
storage
Lyle’s comparison between flows in systems
potential energy
INPUT
retroďŹ tting and upgrading reusing existing resources
social link
cladding existing
REUSE/RETROFIT new developments provide an abundance
infrastructure solar thermal collectors
cooling
REGENERATIVE CYCLE
SOLAR
solar cladding
solar access
heating CCHP
WIND
infrastructure
real time data
lighting
WATER
campus wise integration night lighting viable and interactive
infrastructure folly nature water storage
well-being
cooling
recreational
heating
inďŹ ltration
visible and interactive
environmental care
education community involvement
Campus regeneration
Regenerative cycle for the University Hes and du Plessis (2015) highlight the dangers of a linear system to design. Current business as usual practices based on the linear throughput system will eventually lead to the degeneration of the systems that supply the energy, materials and other services to our cities’. Lyle (1994) suggests that a regenerative system can be achieved by simply reincorporating the basic life support services of nature such as energy conversion, water treatment, cycling nutrients and waste assimilation into the design of landscapes. The diagram on the left is an aspirational concept diagram highlighting the main contributors to a regenerative cycle on campus as well as the opportunities as inputs and drivers of this cycle.
Inputs for this system have been identified as potential energy and social linking opportunities. Potential energy is identifying that a majority of university buildings on site are of a variety of time periods and as such possess different levels of energy efficiency. Newer developments such as the Melbourne School of Design has been rated as 6 star efficient whereas older heritage listed buildings are of a lower rating. In accordance to the cycle, newer developments should produce an abundance and older buildings need to be retrofitted where appropriate. Social linking is about creating opportunities for reducing, reusing and recycling at human scale. Underlying this cycle is education. The university has the responsibility of educating its community and the surrounding neighbourhood about these systems and the benefits associated with them.
The university should be aspiring to become a living lab which provides opportunities for knowledge and innovation testing of new regenerative systems. It will be through this that the university, a previously closed public institution, can reestablish ties with its immediate surrounding neighbourhood. The university will become a major driver for change at the local and global scale.
Source: Albert Chong, 2016
Both images show “waste�. Waste as rubbish (on the left) which may be an indicator of resource consumption resource that can be recycled, re-purposed and reused. The Raymond Priestley building represents a different type of waste: space with regenerative energy potential.
Sharpest tool in a shed full of beach balls.
The University of Melbourne - current Currently, the University of Melbourne has the beginnings of a solar capture system with various arrays located atop select buildings. A good example of such a system can be seen atop Wilson Hall. With a capacity of 102 kWp, this system not only feeds into itself but adjacent buildings as well when there is excess energy. However, there are a number of tall buildings throughout the campus which are potentially being underutilised. Their roof-space and north facing facades absorbing heat but lacking the conversion factor to create potential energy. The University of Melbourne may be the highest ranked university within Australia, however when compared on a global platform, our campus is lacking in a few key areas such as community engagement and sustainability programs. Source: Albert Chong, 2016
University of South Hampton At their Highfield campus, the University of South Hampton have incorporated photo-voltaic panels into the facades of buildings. The image on the left shows Building 2 refurbished with a pv facade due to the poor condition of the original cladding. With a total system capacity of 7.2 kWp, the electricity gathered is fed into an internal plant room of inverters which feeds into the main building supply system. The system is monitored to provide information on output and operating temperatures. Additionally, the university offers postgraduate study that ties into fuel cells, photo-voltaic systems and infrastructure on campus.
Source: University of South Hampton, 2012
Town Hall House Trigeneration
The City of Sydney will produce its own low-carbon energy for power, heating and cooling at Sydney Town Hall and its staff offices after Council approved a tender for a trigeneration plant in Town Hall House. The project will contribute to Sustainable Sydney 2030 by reducing the City’s annual carbon emissions by 3 per cent
and reducing energy bills for Town Hall and Town Hall House by an average of $320,000 per year over the life of the project. The trigeneration plant will also improve the NABERS energy efficiency rating of Town Hall House from 3.5 to 4.5 stars.
FROM LOCAL TO GLOBAL
Throwing away resources Waste being thrown away are potential resources. Reusing and re-purposing goods that were previously unthought of as a resource through a series of programs is not a new concept. There are programs within coffee culture where certain resources are re-purposed, recycled and reused. From the ground coffee remnants to the paper cup the coffee is served in, all is reusable. In London over ‘5000 coffee cups are discarded each minute, but less than 1% of these are actually recycled’ (Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, 2016).
Source: goodcycles.org
Another example of reusing resources can be seen back in Melbourne. Good Cycles is a workshop which repurposes neglected bicycles and give them a second life. Additionally they are a social enterprise who engages the community through cycling initiatives.
Upcycling While recycling is a great way system to reuse waste resources, it is only at best only slowing down the our resource consumption rate. This is where upcycling comes in: a system where resources used to initially create goods are considered during the design and manufacturing process. As a prominent innovation hub, the university could become a testing ground for new materials and systems that are in line with the upcycling theory.
Bio-bean London based company Bio-bean hopes to convert left-over coffee grounds into biodiesel for vehicles and biomass pellets to heat buildings. The company collects coffee waste from industrial coffee factories, coffee shops, offices and transport hubs, including London’s seven largest rail stations. While their current take amounts to just several hundred tons each week, they plan to scale up to 50,000 tons in 2016, about a quarter of London’s annual coffee waste. Coffee waste as a biofuel feed stock has several advantages. It doesn’t compete with food crops in the same way as first-generation biofuels made from corn or palm oil. Additionally, coffee grounds do not require an expensive filtering process. It is also in constant and readily available supply, as long as cities throughout the modern world maintain their caffeine habits.
FROM WITHIN
Union Lawn In order for the University to reconnect and collaborate with the immediate community, it must first prove and test systems within itself on campus. A variety of systems is key to a successful network: - Solar arrays - Vertical wind turbines - Ground level stormwater storage - Water and wind driven turbines A proposed testing ground to be implemented at Union Lawn for several reasons. First, the site contains two buildings more than 8 storeys tall which is ideal for pv cladding and water storage on the roof. Note: in line with upcycling, systems sourced are required to manufactured in an environmentally friendly process such as organic pv panels.
N Created by João Proença from the Noun Project
Current condition •• •• •• ••
Impervious ground treatment - no water infiltration Lacking regenerative capabilities Large open space - limited functions and flexibility Building operating as individual silos with no co-functions
Baldwin Spencer Building
Melbourne School of Design
Raymond Priestley Building
Water history
Present - Union Lawn
Union Lawn has undergone major changes over its lifetime. Developing from the original wetlands to the ornamental lake in the 1800s. Today the site is paved over with no hint of its water history. The site is also part of a greater underground water network which once began at Princess Park and flowed towards Elizabeth Street in the CBD.
1800s - ornamental lake
The redevelopment of Union Lawn needs to respect its history and acknowledge it in some way or form.
Princess Park
University Oval Union Lawn South Lawn University Square
Elizabeth Street
Indigenous - wetlands
Strategies
Service roads Pedestrian flow
Views and entrances
Flows
Wind flow Modified Union Lawn
N
Wind flow
Concept of different spaces
RAINWATER FROM SURROUNDING AREA
RAIN FROM ROOF
WATERFALL
POND
N
Bioremediation natural filter
Edinburgh Garden’s rainwater garden, North Fitzroy
The area outlined in front of Baldwin Spencer will be repurposed for insertion of a natural system. Union Lawn used to be a wetland and during the 1800s, was an ornamental lake. Today, it is a concrete paved area with no hint of its previous historical development. Not only will the pond system be an acknowledge to indigenous and university history, but will also help with filtering collected stormwater and possibly pretreated black water. This natural pond area can also act as a water version of the University’s Systems Gardens where it not only serves as a physical connection to nature but fulfills an educational role as well.
Source: Albert Chong, 2016
RAIN FROM ROOF
SMALL GUTTER
INFILTRATION
WIDE GUTTER
N
Folly basin When it is dry, the square becomes a large open recreational area. The basin is fit for everyone, with steps and a slope to accommodate all accessibilities. Overlooking the basin is an outdoor sheltered recreation and study space as like the space behind the Sidney Myer Building. When it rains, the basin fills through a series of gutters that help direct the flow of rainwater. After the rain, the water flows into an underground infiltration device and from here gradually seeps back into ground water. Thereby the ground water balance is kept at a level and can also cope with dry periods. Additionally, it can help keep plants and trees in good condition.
Open study space with water feature, University of Melbourne
Source: Robyn Pollock, 2015
INFILTRATION
RAIN FROM ROOF SOLAR COLLECTORS
INFILTRATION
EXTERNAL WATER TANKS
EXISTING GUTTERS
N
Performance stage Outside the MSD building is flexible open space that be converted from a stage to more open seating space. With the heritage backdrop, this stage can be utilised for a wide range of programs. From during student union events such as the Night Market with its music performances to providing a picturesque location for a graduation photo. The wooden stage sits a top an elevated green area as a continuation of the existing green space outside the southern side of MSD.
John Madejski Garden - V&A Museum, London
Source: Dezeen, 2015
Overall Plan
N
Pond and folly •• Water in a regnerative system where runoff is collected via gutters and directed to respective areas. •• Black water treatment system works with bioremediation to filter out toxins and wastes in water before being reused or undergo infiltration.
HEATED WATER BLACK WATER TREATMENT BLACK WATER
Baldwin Spencer Building
INFILTRATION
INFILTRATION
Raymond Priestley Building
Performance stage and colonnade •• Union House redevelopment: colonnade cladding and energy generation •• Solar thermal collectors provide hot and cold water using certain class of pv panels •• Runoff from outdoor performance area will be collected and stored in buried tanks to be converted for hot water use or undergo infiltration.
Union House
INFILTRATION
INFILTRATION
MSD
Future developments around the campus will need to follow a series of guidelines to achieve and energy efficient building. Upcycling will also be addressed through particular sourcing of materials such as insulation.
Union Road colonnade Union Road will continue to function as a service as it does today but program changes will made to make the space more pedestrian orientated. Simple strategies such as specified hours for service vehicle and deliveries can easily remove the clash between vehicles and pedestrians. As Union House will be retrofitted rather than demolished in accordance with reusing existing resources. An example of upgrading the building is to partially clad the exterior which provides shelter from the elements during poor weather as well as allowing for an expansion of the upper levels of Union House such as a large balcony or additional facilities that tie in with the theatre.
Bioremediation natural system Like the Systems Gardens, Union Pond will also be a space that is used for education and recreation. Key features to note are: accessibility to Baldwin Spencer is still available but the area will be treated as a specific destination rather than a recreational space. The existing Sun sculpture will also stay but lowered to ground level for better interactivity. In this area, the pond will be the visible system but there will also be a myriad of hidden systems that help filter and pre-treat runoff and black water. There will also be a shallow area which is ankle deep for folly.
Business as usual
source
inputs
outputs
sinks
consume efficiency
Toxic air pollution
Coal powered
Often located far outside metropolitan Melbourne
waste
Trigeneration
source
distribution
assimilation filtration
Stored in infrastructure to reused storage
An abundance is created on days of optimal energy usage and collection
Various regenerative systems working symbiotically
Services and energy is provided for neighbouring communities
Source: AUSGRID Learning Centre Trigeneration
Neighbourhood Regenerative System
Various regenerative systems working symbiotically - gives and takes accordingly - university during the day and communities at night
Hospital
University of Melbourne
CCHP facility
Carlton Connect and community
Generator sites are developments which provide for the immediate neighbourhood, but also engages with the community through education programs. BIG architects’ Uppsala cogeneration power plant is designed to supplement Uppsala’s existing energy infrastructure during the peak loads in the dark and cold fall, winter and spring. With only seasonal use, the power plant would be vacant in the summer months during peak season of tourism and festivals. As such, BIG design the plant to transform the public perception of a power plant visually.
Source: BIG, Uppsala power plant
Filtered influence
Residential colleges
Generator building Potential feeders Heritage listed Generator sites New developments Testing grounds Affiliated influence Community and commercial
Lygon Street
Queensbury
Street
Future innovation Source: Residential Colleges, the University of
Colleges north of the University of Melbourne - future testing ground for new energy innovations. This, in turn, filters out to the immediate community as it gradually becomes part of a greater energy efficient network.
References Edwards, B 2003, Green Buildings Pay, Spon Press, New York. Hes, D & du Plessis, C 2015, Designing for Hope: Pathway to Regenerative Sustainability, Routledge, New York. Lyle, J T 1994, Regenerative Design for Sustainable Development, John Wiley and Sons, New York.
IMAGES
Anderson, J 2015, coffee grounds, photograph, posted 8 October 2015, <http://www.gizmag.com/used-coffee-grounds-biofuels/39731/>. Anderson, S 2015, Melbourne International Design Week 2015, posted 12 May 2015, <http://www.sarahanderson.com.au/sarahandersonphotographer/2015/5/12/melbourne-international-design-week-2015-exhibition-in-city-square-melbourne> BIG Architects, Uppsala power plant, viewed 10 June 2016. Chong, A 2016, Edinburgh Gardens, photograph, taken 1 June 2016. Dezeen, John Madejski Garden, posted 28 May 2015, <http://www.dezeen.com/2015/05/28/frida-escobedo-aztec-installation-landscape-victoria-albert-courtyard-london/>. FM Magazine, trigeneration, posted 13 June 2012, <http://www.fmmagazine.com.au/sectors/cotrigenera tion-who-what-and-why/>. Gamboa, A 2014, car sign edited, photograph, posted 4 April 2014, <https://thoughtswithdreams.wordpress.com/2014/04/04/its-us-or-boralwestern-communities-rally-together-to-stop-landfill-expansion/car-sign-edited/>. Goodcycles, poster, posted 20 July 2013, <http://treadlie.com.au/good-cycles/>. Greentech, landfill, photograph, viewed 10 June 2016, <http://www.greenenviro.net/Product4.aspx>. Koziol, M 2015, Trigernation power plants back on agenda at City of Sydney pools, published 21 September 2015, <http://www.smh.com.au/ nsw/trigeneration-power-plants-back-on-agenda-at-city-of-sydney-pools-20150910-gjjb48.html>. Residential Colleges, aerial photograph, viewed 10 June 2016, <http://www.colleges.unimelb.edu.au/>. Tony Worrall Foto, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Wake Up and Smell the Wasteâ&#x20AC;?, photograph, taken on 13 March 2016, <https://www.flickr.com/photos/tonyworrall/25893180353>.